


Fall of Stars: Awakening

by Anglotron



Series: Fall of Starsverse [1]
Category: Transformers - All Media Types, Transformers: Prime, Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2001), Transformers: Robots in Disguise (2015)
Genre: Alien Biology, Alien Cultural Differences, Alien Culture, Alien Technology, Alliances, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Ancient History, Blind Character, Character Death, Consequences, Culture Shock, Different perspectives, Friendship, Gen, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Infighting, Injustice, Mental Health Issues, Mind Control Aftermath & Recovery, Mind Games, Mind Rape, Monsters, Multi, Mutants, Necromancy, Other, Past Brainwashing, Past Torture, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Prophecy, Racism, Reluctant monster, Villains, Violence, War, true evil
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-24
Updated: 2021-01-24
Packaged: 2021-03-13 18:47:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,560
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28658196
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Anglotron/pseuds/Anglotron
Summary: When a new enemy raises their head, Megatron and Optimus form a truce, determined to keep this horrid being from reaching their goal. Instead of a darkness, it's a burning light that seeks to destroy all that they know. The humans, Cybertronians and others must cooperate if they want to make a stand to this foe. Beware the one who gazes at stars.
Relationships: Megatron & Optimus Prime, Megatron & Soundwave (Transformers), Ratchet & Team Prime (Transformers: Prime), Shockwave & Soundwave (Transformers), Team Prime & Team Prime (Transformers: Prime)
Series: Fall of Starsverse [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2100267
Comments: 2
Kudos: 6





	Fall of Stars: Awakening

War is inevitable.

Throughout the history of the universe, there has always been war. It's as prominent as a fire in the night and leaves burns never forgotten. It' waits to take root, then blooming into a bloody rose. 

People die on either side and not peacefully. Often, they die in terror and pain. To go to war is to face death every day; all around you, staring at you, unblinking, in the optic. Every day may very well be your last. The stress alone can kill, and it's all-around a mental struggle to come online; knowing that today might be the day you die. 

War had been brewing on Cybertron for aeons, its potency bubbling beneath its surface. Injustices from the Council was just one factor in a line of dominos that caused the planet to crumble. Although it wasn't the desired outcome, it was necessary. 

Protests and campaigns wouldn't renew Cybertron, and wouldn't end the consistent and growing abuse from higher-ups, the Caste system wouldn't fall by signatures and numbers alone. 

Nobody wanted a war. Maybe a few riots, but not full-blown civil war. The Council were determined to destroy any rebellion, and through the media, painted all as terrorists. 

There were millions of cracks in the tree of stability, and what cut it down was the voice of a single gladiator, tired of the reign. And just like that, the seed of doubt and desire for change bloomed. People started fighting back, demanding equal treatment, using the words of a former nobody to strengthen themselves. 

When the Council sent their dogs to squash them, then met by reciprocated violence, and the media couldn't hide it anymore. Finally, the citizens of Cybertron were fighting against the injustices of the world. The Council created its group to combat the 'terrorists', and it grew from there. 

It was so gradual, the acknowledgement of it being a war came only at the end of the early era. 

He couldn't say for the Autobots, but Megatron felt as though the Decepticons had achieved why Cybertron couldn't, self-sustaining and didn't require the slavery of others. It was an empire. 

While the Autobots were still a threat, they weren't near the strength in the prime of the war. Hopefully, the end was near, and the fighting could finally cease. Everyone was tired, even the nutjobs. 

Although he couldn't guarantee it, some Autobots had to be tired as well. They had to be, with how long the war had gone on. 

It's what he hoped for, anyway.

The thick sour smell of the swamp of Dagobah stung his olfactory sensors. The name was from a human movie franchise, and the name certainly fits. The swamp was thick, hot, and the water darker than the abyss of space. Even so, it was necessary to be there. Even if he'd only been operating a week since his coma, his people needed him. 

Keeping his audio receptors on maximum volume, Megatron carefully navigated the mangrove labyrinth, watching for signs of Autobot movement. His fusion cannon was ready to fire, but the setting lowered. Burning down the swamp wasn't his intent - the inhabitants caught up in the war didn't deserve their homes destroyed. 

He knew Breakdown would love it here. He had a thing for Louisiana and 'swamp puppies'. Ironic, considering his mate was an obsessive-compulsive germaphobe. 

The sounds of heavy footsteps sinking into muddy water caught his attention. The mech waited, determining whether it was ally or foe. He slowly stepped from the pathway, vanishing into the foliage. While waiting, he saw a young femme, likely an adolescent, running and panting. She had no indications of being a soldier, even down to her form of running, which wasted more energy than she likely realised. 

She tripped on a thick tree root beneath the murky surface, falling into the slosh. While getting back up, others joined, who were Autobots. Megatron recognised Bluestreak, Huffer, Hookglide, Nosecone and Cloudraker. They were part of Whirl's group, notorious for being whackjobs with little concern for life, even their own. 

While watching, he realised they had new symbols on them, neither Decepticon nor Autobot. With how much the Autobots fought within their ranks, it shouldn't be a surprise. 

"You dare run from the Master's light?" Nosecone hissed. 

She whimpered, scrambling to get far away. Bluestreak stepped on her side, pinning her to the ground. 

No way in the pit he was going to stand for this. 

Megatron made his presence known, aiming his cannon and blasting Hookglide in the faceplate. He stumbled back, his faceplate horrifically burned. They turned on him, but they were of little consequence. The gladiator had fought genetically engineered monsters who committed better scrap than these minions.

Megatron activated his blade, swiping it, Nosecone's head was removed from the shoulders, falling to the muddy thickness. At the same moment, his elbow joint drove into Bluestreak's optic, shattering it. Cloudraker transformed and took off, wisely choosing life over fighting the Decepticon Leader. 

Bluestreak was left alive for information purposes. Otherwise, Megatron would've terminated him as well. However, he had to tend to something first. The mech offered his servo to the femme, waiting patiently while his pede was on Bluestreak's back. 

"What is your name?" Megatron asked as she grasped it, yelping in surprise as he effortlessly pulled her to her pedes. 

"A-Astrocast," she whimpered, whipping mud from her faceplate. "You're Megatron."

"The last I checked," he responded, dragging Bluestreak to a standing position. The mech was out, so Megatron swung him over his shoulder, intending to interrogate later. "I think it would be wise if you stayed with me."

Weighing her limited options, Astrocast slowly walked beside the mech, shivering from his sheer presence. He was twice her size, and in her mind, weighed ten times more. 

Megatron didn't know why they attacked her, but she'd tell him when she was ready. Keeping her safe was a priority, as well as getting Bluestreak to the settlement. With any luck, this new group wouldn't be an issue. 

The sensation of mush seeping into the gaps of Megatron's armour was disgusting. The smell only worsened, and being big made it difficult as the trees packed closer together. The further they ventured, the thicker the undergrowth became. Not to mention, there were bound to be numerous fauna.

"What are you doing here?" Megatron decided to ask, the trills of native creatures becoming grating. "This planet is no place for a youngling."

"I'm not a youngling," She corrected, the thick solution reaching her hips as they entered a deep patch. "Carrier brought me. She wanted to keep an optic on me. Her name is Highjump."

An Autobot General, the very reason Megatron was there. With Astrocast, they had the potential to end the fighting here. Natives often didn't last long when Cybertronians combated each other. 

Astrocast gripped onto his leg, her pedes sinking through a hole of some kind. Megatron pulled her from it, remembering to be wary of such things. Even if her carrier wanted her nearby, this was no place for a citizen. Pit, they shouldn't be here at all. Part of the Corvus Accord was that they'd not intrude on inhabited planets for combat purposes. 

It was complicated with places like Earth since the Decepticons had been there since the Dinosaurs. There was no sapient life back then, but they evolved. He really should have considered that possibility when arranging that agreement with Prime. 

"A mech came to our camp, named Tiananmen. Since he showed up, mecha started changing. You were either with 'the light' or a traitor. Carrier sent me away, but those mechs followed me," Astrocast added, feeling slightly less frightened of the mech now. "I don't know if she's even alive."

"I'll do what's within my power to reunite you with your carrier," Megatron promised, absorbing the new information. 

A few cults were lying around; they were as much a part of society as war. However, mecha like Bluestreak were devoted followers of Prime. To switch so suddenly to some 'Master of Light' was concerning. He feared that it wasn't just Autobots susceptible to this stranger.

When the mech heard something, he paused, his servo going in front of the adolescent to stop her. Moments later, a Cybertronian became visible, painted camo to merge with the background. She saluted the mech, standing to attention with pride. She was an arachnicon, and her helm shape clued him in on who it was. Instead of the horns pointing upwards, they curled downwards, akin to a ram, and only one arachnicon had that. 

"Lieutenant Dolomedes," Megatron named, pleased to see her. "Next time, I'd like for the coordinates to be closer to the base."

"Sorry, Commander in Chief," Dolomedes said, bowing slightly in his presence. She looked up at Bluestreak on his shoulder and Astrocast hiding behind him. "I take it that your venture was eventful?"

"You could say that," He answered. 

Dolomedes wasn't a soldier, per see, but she dedicated her life to wildlife. Her expertise would be fruitful on a planet such as this one. He had no idea the kind of animals that lived here, so her advice was invaluable. 

The arachnicon led the way, ready to hear what had happened once they arrived at Outpost Loco-12. She was glad that Lord Megatronnus was alright. News of his 'demise' always concerned her, even though she had faith that her lord wouldn't succumb to Autobot trickery. 

Just being in his presence was an honour. Although he didn't like it, many Decepticons revered Megatron as the Autobots did Optimus. To them, he'd paved the way to freedom and prosperity, what a Prime should be. Dolomedes owed him her life, as well as many others. She felt proud to serve the empire and even prouder to be beside her leader. 

The Outpost was on an island, one of the multiple strewn across the marshy archipelago. Mecha, ready to fight at a moments notice, stood to attention. They were glad to see their lord, just as Dolomedes had.

"Lord Megatron, it's good to see you're still kicking. I nearly rusted my britches when I heard you'd gone and got blown up," Redhead said, bowing slightly. 

Megatron nodded, dropping the prisoner to the ground before Redhead. Without needed to say a word, two soldiers dragged the unconscious mech away, ready for later interrogation. Two walked forwards, their gaze locked with Astrocast. 

"She is under my care until she is reunited with her carrier," Megatron announced, narrowing his optics harshly. "Any harm brought to her will result in severe repercussions." The mecha nodded, stepping away from her. "Twintwist - You will personally guard her."

The mech stood forward, silently accepting his orders. 

Astrocast looked up at him, and he could tell that at least on a subconscious level, she trusted him. With silent assurance, Astrocast slowly walked to Twintwist, who started talking to her. He was trying to be friendly, but it wasn't his social skills Megatron needed him for, it was his sheer fighting capacity. As an ex-Wrecker, his capabilities knew no bounds, and his loyalty even stronger. 

She would be safe with him. 

Redhead brought him up to speed on the situation. To put things simply, the Autobots were causing problems and needed sorting out. However, the mecha hadn't been able to locate their base. Fortunately, Bluestreak was going to fix that. He'd get some answers about this Tiananmen character, too. 

Megatron made his way to the holding cells, followed closely by Redhead. If Bluestreak wasn't open to talking, the cortical psychic patch was the other option. The Autobots were incredibly terrified of it, and he could see why. Though it wasn't supposed to, it worked similarly to a bridge and could go both ways. 

"How'd ye get the glitch's daughter?" Redhead asked, sounding like a stereotypical southern American. "Highjump would rather soil 'er britches in front of ya than let that femmeling out of her optics."

"That is what I want to find out," Megatron answered, walking towards Bluestreak's cell. He paused before it, looking down at the crumpled mech. 

He charged his fusion cannon and fired at Bluestreak's pedes, startling the mech. He shook his helm, looking around and then locking optics with Megatron.

"You bootleg, you're supposed to be pushing lugnuts!"

"And yer supposed to shut ye trap," Redhead huffed, insulted for his leader. Megatron, however, wasn't concerned with the outrage. If anything, it was amusing. "If I had my druthers, I'd melt ye down and make you into a chair."

The titan raised a servo, silencing him. Redhead's single orange optic flickered from annoyance, but backed down, not daring disobey his superior. Like with many in the early rioting days, he'd been subjected to empurata. Megatron outlawed the atrocity. It made him feel sick to his tanks, just thinking about how many suffered from it. 

How any were Autobots, he couldn't understand.

"I hear you've made a new friend. Tiananmen, is it?" Megatron questioned, scowling down at the mech, using his presence alone to crumple the 'Autobot'. 

"Lord Tiananmen, you are unworthy of his name," Bluestreak hissed, gripping onto the bars of his cell and pressing his faceplate against it. Redhead stepped back, shivering.

"His optics, they're... they're not right!"

A little known fact about Megatron was that he was sparked blind. The power of sight only came in his late teens, and even then, he couldn't see any colour. It was like how Dare Devil saw things, but with more defined outlines, akin to a blueprint, or something of that nature. While he couldn't see colour, others would tell him.

He knew Bluestreak's optics were blue, like with the majority of Autobots. For Redhead to shout that, meant something was wrong. 

"I have seen the truth and the light. Lord Tiananmen has shown us the way to the AllSpark and Primus' grace. All who turn their optics from the glory shall fall before they become instruments of Unicron!"

The Autobots worshipped Primes and Primus, but Megatron had never heard this, not even from the fanatics. It was cultish, as though Bluestreak was possessed. 

"And Astrocast turned from this 'light'?" He questioned, growing more concerned. Perhaps it was a hypnosis kind of thing? 

"Those who shun the light will be burned by it before darkness takes them." 

Say whatever you want about Highjump as a Cybertronian, she was right to send Astrocast away. They were looking to kill her, all because of this Tiananmen. Highjump might be already dead, and as much as he disliked her, he hoped not for Astrocast's sake. 

"My Liege, his eyes are pink and white," Redhead said, looking up at the titan. "It wasn't like that a moment ago."

Megatron felt something resonate within him like it wanted to fight against Bluestreak. A warmth spread across Megatron's body from his spark, and his optics changed to a brilliant violet. 

His vision changed; somehow. He could 'see' an aura around him, and it was colliding with Bluestreak's. There was something in the middle of Bluestreak, and there was bright light surrounding and sticking into it. He knelt, examining the oddity. It jittered as though it were alive. It surged forward, and Bluestreak followed, savaging clawing to get to Megatron. It was like a parasite in control of him. 

Curiously, the titan reached out a sharp digit grazing Bluestreak's servo. There was the sensation of force, like the same sides of a magnet pushing against each other, but at the same time, opposites attracting. Pulled and pushed, conflicting feeling.

Something weird about the light as that it felt familiar, even though he'd never seen it before. No, it wasn't that it felt familiar to him, but the shard in his spark. It knew the thing inside of Bluestreak and vice versa. 

A thought came to the titan's mind like a punch in the face. 

If there is the fossilised blood of Unicron, couldn't there be the fossilised blood of Primus?

"M-my lord?" Redhead muttered, terrified of his lord's state.

"It's alright," Megatron assured, focusing on Bluestreak.

Megatron grabbed Bluestreak's servo, and that pulling push came again, like a battle between the auras. Megatron decided to test something, not having tested his new abilities.

He fought against it, watching his aura seep into Bluestreak's as if he were an infection. The light fought back, but Megatron's will was superior, and he made his way to the epicentre. While Bluestreak's body writhed, the light fought, seemingly clawing at Megatron's aura. With a grin, he defeated it, snuffing out the light. 

There was a sudden connection, like when he'd first reanimated the dead warriors in the canyon. And like that, Bluestreak was his. His body, anyway. That thing in the centre was gone. 

Megatron looked to Redhead, seeing a similar thing in the centre. Was that his spark? 

He turned back to the zombie, mentally commanding it to stay down, and it obeyed. While it was amazing, it was also worrying. 

Someone could be out there, using Primus' blood to take blind followers, who'd do anything they said. He recalled Nosecone mentioning a 'Master' of light, but Bluestreak called Tiananmen lord, so he wasn't the one in charge. Someone had similar abilities to Megatron, and Pit knew how long they'd been amassing an army. 

"Gather everyone," Megatron announced, relaxing and the purple light receding. "We're going to find Tiananmen." 

When in war, there wasn't always two factions. In this case, there was a crazy cult. 

Redhead nodded, scampering off to inform everyone.

Megatron followed, though at a slower pace, focused on finding Astrocast. She'd lead them to the base, and hopefully, there was a way to reverse this. Although Megatron was biased against Autobots, nobody deserved their free will snatched away. If he let this slide, he'd be no better than those like Ultra Magnus or Pharma. 

Astrocast was with Twintwist, who was eagerly explaining what a crocodile was. She was confused, having never heard of such a creature. She turned to the titan, relieved to escape Twintwist's enthusiasm. 

"We're going to take Tiananmen and rescue your carrier. Can you lead the way?" He asked, keeping his tone calm.

She wasn't a soldier, she was a child, and he had to keep that in mind. Intimidation would get both of them nowhere. There were just so few younglings in the battlefield nowadays, and he supposed he should be grateful for that. 

The femmeling didn't know how to answer. 

Saying no would doom her carrier, but saying yes would betray her. Highjump being angry was preferable being dead. Weighing her options, Astrocast nodded.

"I'll be right by your side," the mech stated, turning to organise his mecha.

Astrocast, sparked during the war, didn't know about before. Her carrier never spoke of it, and neither did any Autobots she met, and she'd met quite a few. Flintlock, Camshaft, Scrounge were a few. There was Optimus Prime, who she liked, as he'd been nice. Despite him being the leader and kind, he talked down to her. 

She didn't think it was intentional, but it made her feel tiny.

Highjump would always act differently around him like she was a mindless robot. It was even worse with Ultra Magnus. She told Astrocast not to speak unless spoken to and to be perfect, anything less was an insult. He talked down to not only Astrocast but her carrier as well. He was mean, short-tempered and a stick in the oil. 

Everyone told her about the Decepticons, how they were evil and cruel. They told her about Megatron, their commander, a mech without a spark and the spawn of Unicron.

And yet, it had been that very same mech who saved her life. He talked _to_ her. Although they'd barely known each other for an hour, it felt like he cared more than the other 'bots did. Astrocast didn't know how to feel. He was supposed to be evil, but if he was so bad, why was he nicer than Commander Ultra Magnus?

"What if she's not ok?" Astrocast asked. When he looked at her, he looked _into_ her, like she was equal, despite being smaller. It was like how Highjump looked at her. "What if she's like them? Or Dead?"

"We'll do all that is within our power to cure her," Megatron answered, kneeling to be at her level. "We'll look after you. You'll be far from the war, somewhere safe. My medics and doctors are the best I know, and they'll do everything to help her, and you can see her. If by some misfortune she does pass, we'll still take care of you. I promise you that."

The mech opened his servo to her, wishing she wasn't here in the first place. 

She shouldn't, but she trusted him. Astrocast hated being in the war, and she had the chance to escape it. She could be with Highjump, without the general part. She could have her carrier again. The femmeling pounced, holding onto the large mech, relieved that she can be far away from the fighting. Astrocast felt safer with him than Ultra Magnus or Prime. 

The mech let her

She starved for the concept of safety for some time; he could feel it. Highjump wasn't going to go down easy, but for this femmeling, he'd drag her to the Rust Sea himself. 


End file.
